(01-02-2024 03:28 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(01-01-2024 09:30 AM)Max Power Wrote:  NIU gets good Chicago ratings when they’re on TV, even if it’s just casual watchers who won’t drive to DeKalb. It’s more than say a Ball State brings to the table and it would certainly be an advantage if NIU were to look for a new conference or the MAC breaks up (unlikely).

Yes, by all means, compare apples to oranges. Of course a casual Chicago watcher would be inclined to watch local NIU as opposed to watching Ball State, one of the Michigans or an Ohio MAC program. But does that mean they'll watch NIU over a Big Ten, Big Eight, ACC, SEC, game? Answer is no.
Which conference is looking to "expand" by adding to the bottom portion of its league? Love NIU, root for NIU, dream of NIU success, but you are not being realistic. We don't have the academic integrity, community size, fan following, administrative vision (remember how no one on here respects Freeman or STF), etc. that will appeal to the Power conferences. They'll steal from C-USA, American Athletic or even Sun Belt before they'll take a MAC program of which only Toledo and Buffalo partially fit their interests. IF -- big if -- you're right that the MAC breaks up, it'll be a portion being absorbed or combined with a G5 remnant to be a different G5 group.

I've been one that has been quite skeptical of the market significance claims around here but I believe the argument regarding further conference expansion/contraction/etc never was considering NIU going to a P5.

Iirc, most of the talk was in regards to the Mountain West expanding eastward and potentially adding a whole division. It was also in regards to the AAC.

I'd still see those conferences as a stretch for wanting to include NIU but I guess you could squint hard enough to see something materialize.

The Sun Belt is also interesting but I really don't see those schools wanting to add a division or whatever of northern climate schools. But hey...another decade or two of global warming and the MAC will be the next Sun Belt.

(01-02-2024 05:04 PM)Big Red Wrote:  

(01-02-2024 03:28 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(01-01-2024 09:30 AM)Max Power Wrote:  NIU gets good Chicago ratings when they’re on TV, even if it’s just casual watchers who won’t drive to DeKalb. It’s more than say a Ball State brings to the table and it would certainly be an advantage if NIU were to look for a new conference or the MAC breaks up (unlikely).

Yes, by all means, compare apples to oranges. Of course a casual Chicago watcher would be inclined to watch local NIU as opposed to watching Ball State, one of the Michigans or an Ohio MAC program. But does that mean they'll watch NIU over a Big Ten, Big Eight, ACC, SEC, game? Answer is no.
Which conference is looking to "expand" by adding to the bottom portion of its league? Love NIU, root for NIU, dream of NIU success, but you are not being realistic. We don't have the academic integrity, community size, fan following, administrative vision (remember how no one on here respects Freeman or STF), etc. that will appeal to the Power conferences. They'll steal from C-USA, American Athletic or even Sun Belt before they'll take a MAC program of which only Toledo and Buffalo partially fit their interests. IF -- big if -- you're right that the MAC breaks up, it'll be a portion being absorbed or combined with a G5 remnant to be a different G5 group.

I've been one that has been quite skeptical of the market significance claims around here but I believe the argument regarding further conference expansion/contraction/etc never was considering NIU going to a P5.

Iirc, most of the talk was in regards to the Mountain West expanding eastward and potentially adding a whole division. It was also in regards to the AAC.

I'd still see those conferences as a stretch for wanting to include NIU but I guess you could squint hard enough to see something materialize.

The Sun Belt is also interesting but I really don't see those schools wanting to add a division or whatever of northern climate schools. But hey...another decade or two of global warming and the MAC will be the next Sun Belt.

NIU has a good recent history in football, and our large media market does set us apart a bit for sure. Our biggest drawback right now is that we are no longer a 25k student school, we've shrunk nearly 10,000 students to 15k. President Freeman is killing us with her racial enrollment steering. She needs to go, we need to grow back ASAP to 20000+ like ISU and UIC.